The Team to Beat
by duncneys
Summary: If there's one thing that every blog needs, it's publicity, and fashion blogger Tom knows just how to promote his blog. Now all he needs is the approval of his partner Jen. / The story of how Tom and Jen decided to apply for Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race (One-Shot)


**Hello, all! My name is Kitty, and some of you may remember me from my old account. I've archived my old account to start up this new one where my improved writing can be posted, because let me tell you, looking at your old writing can be an agonizing experience. It feels good to start all over again with a clean slate!**

 **Now, for those of you who may not know, the first episode of** ** _Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race,_** **has been leaked. Let me just say, while I am rather upset that this happened to Fresh, the new season looks very promising. This new cast is extremely funny! My favorites happen to be Jen and Tom, The Fashion Bloggers, inspired by Tom McGillis and Jennifer Pertsch themselves! In fact, I love them so much, that I decided to write my first one-shot on my new account about them based on the limited information provided from the first episode. Keep in mind that we don't know much about them yet, so I'll be making up some information about them. Some of what you may read is in no way canon or confirmed by the show's writers.**

 **If you read all of that, thank you very much! I don't own Jen, Tom, or any other characters mentioned (except Nicole, Jen's barista friend). They belong to Fresh TV!**

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When you're one of the halves in a partnership, odds are that no matter what the circumstances, you should be able to drop whatever you're doing at the moment if your other half is in need. When you're called upon by your partner, there's always a sense of urgency, a sense that you need to get to this other half of yours as soon as you can. These scenarios are usually life or death situations.

Luckily for Jen, this was in no way a life or death situation. Her fellow fashion blogger, Tom, was unaware of how easy he was to read.

If it had been, she would've been able to tell by Tom's different ways of texting. It was almost like a secret code. When he was worried, he used multiple punctuation marks at the ends of his sentences. When he was sad, he typed in all lowercase. When he was happy, he typed certain words in all caps for emphasis. So, when Jen had received a text that read; _"Jen, you have GOT to get over here. I have news that is going to BLOW your new Zoraab socks OFF your FEET!",_ she just knew that he was alright. Now, all she had to do was grab a coffee and walk to Tom's apartment.

Giggling to herself, the female fashionista tucked her phone into her purse and waited for the road to settle down before crossing the street with the rest of the crowd. Any person could tell that it was a gorgeous Spring day due to the baby blue sky and the short skirts worn by most of the female public. The sound of cars coming to multiple screeching halts alerted the group that it was time to cross. Jen invited herself to the front of her peers and sashayed across the street, a hand on her hip, and her heels clacking definitively on the blacktop with every step she took. She was like, SO the _IT Girl_ right now.

After grimacing at the occasional catcall, the fashion blogger made it across the street , swishing her ponytail to the side as the cars resumed their speeding ways. The coffee shop she was on her way to was a hot-spot among the city's youth. It had Wi-Fi, reasonable prices, and comfortable chairs that swiveled around when you sat in them.

Really, what more could you want? As she walked in, Jen made a mental note to ask Tom about maybe moving their blogging location to the shop, as it did get crowded in his small apartment.

"Hey, Nicole!" Jen drawled happily, approaching the barista. "Looking cute today, doll!"

The other girl looked up from the spare change she was counting and smiled. Jen always lightened her up a bit. "Thanks, girl. You up for your usual?"

"Of course! I've got to hurry, though. Apparently Tom has big news he just _has_ to tell me!" The blogger set her purse down and waved her hands around in the air for emphasis.

"That boy is crazy, Jen." Nicole smirked as she made her way to the cappucino maker. She was a long time viewer of Jen and Tom's fashion blog, so she knew how excitable the latter could be. "You still blogging from his stuffy little apartment?"

The other girl sighed, leaning her elbows against the countertop. "Yeah. It's so hard to focus in that tiny space with like, three people besides me already living there."

"Well," The barista began as she grabbed some sweetener. "have you ever considered setting up shop in here sometime?"

"Uh, yeah! I was like, _just_ thinking about that!"

Nicole gave a small laugh, grabbing the fresh cappucino and topping it off with some whipped cream. "You two are always welcome. Plus, tons of our customers love your blog. You guys really need to start promoting yourselves more."

Grinning, the female blogger clapped her hands together. "You're right. After Tom tells me his news, I'll tell him mine!" She then began to squeal and jump a bit in her new wedges. "Oh Nic, you always have the best ideas! Well, besides me!"

"Don't I know it. That'll be $3.10, hon." The barista slid the cappucino towards her friend.

"Thanks, Nic! I can always count on you!" Jen chortled along, handing over the money she owed. Taking a sip of her drink, she began to turn, nodding a goodbye to her friend, who promptly waved back. "See you around, girl!"

"Good luck with Tom!" Nicole called as the blogger walked out the door. She then set the money in the cash register, chuckling to herself.

 **===X===**

Tom's apartment was halfway across the city from the cafe Jen had stopped at, so she flagged down a taxi to quicken her pace. Her partner had texted her at least sixteen times asking where she was, so Jen was relieved when she could finally respond; _"You need to CHILL, I'm outside! Coming up like, right now."_

The complex in which her friend lived was rather small, yet undeniably quaint. It was far past the hustle and bustle of the main roads, and flowers grew safely around the steps leading up to the entrance. Tom lived on the third floor of the four story building. You could tell which apartment was his because it was the only window to have different colored shutters. Jen remembered Tom explaining how the hideous mustard colored shutters didn't go very well with the light brown building, and how the dark crimson went much better. She had no trouble admitting that he was absolutely right.

Walking inside, Jen greeted a few of the other residents in the lobby. She came over to visit Tom so often that they all knew who she was. Plus, according to Tom himself, people just gravitated to Jen simply because of the upbeat attitude that resonated from her. Of course, the female fashionista was told this almost everywhere she went, but it was especially important coming from Tom.

When visiting, the elevator ride was always Jen's least favorite part.

Unless she was with a friend, specifically her partner, Jen found standing in that small, cramped space with mere acquaintances was extremely stressful. Someone _always_ recognized her, and then that someone _always_ asked for her opinion on their outfit. She'd advised teen girls going on off first dates to elderly men meeting his friends for bingo night. This spiel was always easier with Tom by her side, but then again, everything was. That's why they were a team.

After helping a middle-aged mom decide which Spartina brand handbag to take to her daughter's chorus concert, Jen exited the elevator on the third floor, smoothing out her purple skirt soon after. The machine always let out in front of the third apartment, and Tom's was the second, so the blogger took a step to the right. This set her right in front of Tom's door.

Jen cleared her throat and held her fist up to knock, but the door flew open to reveal a tall, aging man with a kind smile and spectacles.

"Hey there, Mr. M! Lookin' good as usual!"

Mr. McGillis, Tom's father, gave a hearty laugh and stepped aside. "We've been expecting you, Jen! Come in, come in!" The girl skipped in, looking around the crowded living room. It consisted of a television, a coffee table, a tasteful brown couch, and some chic tan recliners from the same collection. "Tom's back in his bedroom waiting for you."

"Alrighty!" Jen smiled, walked past the living room. The apartment only consisted of this room, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and one bath. "Thank you very much!"

She knew the short path to Tom's room like the back of her hand. The fashion bloggers liked to think of it as their own control room. They set up their laptops in there every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night to update their blog. These sessions usually consisted of the two eating snacks and leaning up against one another's backs, each re-vamping a different page of their site. On Saturdays, they'd post a new video, and on Thursdays, new pictures.

"Tom! I'm here, so open this door and tell me why you were yelling at me over text!" Jen tired to hide her giggles, but it didn't work. So much for sounding annoyed with him.

"Jen, I can always tell when you're trying to be mad at me." Came the muffled reply.

"Just open the door and tell me the news or I'm leaving!"

"Okay, okay, I'm coming!" No sooner than this was said, Tom opened the door, and Jen immediately flung herself into her best friend's arms. "Hey! Glad you came!"

"Glad you invited me." The girl smiled, stepping back. "Now, you _have_ to tell me what in the world you're so like, excited about."

Despite him already being pretty excited, Tom perked up, and practically leaped over to his bed. "You aren't gonna believe this, Jen! Get over here!" He then positioned himself on his bed, grabbing his laptop and opening it. However, when Jen joined him and scooted closer, Tom slapped the top of his computer down so she couldn't see whatever it was he'd apparently been so eager to show.

"Ah ah ah!" The male blogger began. "I have a bit of backstory first! I mean, we can't just go charging into news this big. That'd be ludicrous!"

Jen rolled her eyes. "Then just hurry up and explain! You can't just leave me hanging dry after building me up like you did!"

"And I won't!" He assured her. "Just kick those pretty little feet up and relax while I do _all_ the explaining for you." Tom smiled contently as his partner sighed, swinging her legs over his and leaning her head up against a pillow.

"Okay. Hit me with your best shot, hon."

The male fashionista cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses. Before launching himself into an explanation or story of any kind, he had to make sure everything was accounted for. Just so Jen wasn't distracted, he set his laptop down on the floor. "Alright, so, you totally have to hear me out. Remember that series we critiqued awhile back called Total Drama?"

"Of course I remember!" Jen nodded, admiring her own necklace in the process. "The girl who lives next door was on the last season, right? I think her name is Ella?"

Tom smiled, glancing at the thin wall. Ella, his neighbor, often disturbed his Dad with her singing. "Exactly! Ella was on Pahkitew Island!"

"Yay for me, but what does that have to do with your special news?" Jen glanced up at him. If he was going to ask her to send in an application for the show where you stayed on a cruddy island for eight weeks, she would most certainly say no.

"Well, if there was a new season, would you watch it?" Tom probed with a sly look in his eyes.

His partner thought for a moment, glancing up at the ceiling as she did so. "I mean like, with you, yeah. Otherwise probably not. Not unless that Lindsay girl was on it. She's like, a fashion legend right now."

The male fashionista leaned over Jen's legs, snagging his laptop from the floor, not yet opening it. "And what if I told you that this new season did _not_ take place on a cruddy island?"

"I'd say good for those poor contestants. I mean like, no one should have to live in those conditions, _especially_ the fashionably svelte."

"Then they're in luck then, I guess." Tom smirked, opening his laptop. "Because this new season doesn't take place on an island, or a rickety old plane."

Jen sat up and rested her arm on her partner's shoulder in order to get a better view of the screen. "The Ridonculous Race?" She gave a small smile in her friend's direction. "I mean, it looks pretty nice, actually. Like, they did away with the sadistic, old host, _and_ they're going to be visiting places like Morocco and Paris!"

"Pretty savvy, huh?" Tom returned the smile. Then, he gave the screen a slight scroll to the left. In the top left-hand corner there was a large flashing button that read in all caps; _"TWO PERSON TEAMS WANTED! SEND IN YOUR APPLICATIONS NOW!"_

 _"_ Oh would you look at that!" The male blogger said with mock-surprise. He stifled a giggle when Jen's jaw dropped, unaware if she was all for what he was implying, or totally against it.

For a moment, she couldn't even speak. After gasping for air a few times, the words finally came to her. "A-Are you like, _serious?"_

"As a heart attack, hon." Came Tom's confident reply.

"But like, us? Going around the world? Competing for a million bucks?" Jen turned and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I don't know..."

"Jen, love, take a minuet to pick up what I'm putting down here." Tom threw his arm around his friend reassuringly. "If I'm recalling this correctly, didn't you say about a week ago that we need to get ourselves out there if we want even _more_ blog followers?"

The girl looked up, fiddling rather nervously with the hair tie around her wrist. "Well, yeah. But like-"

"And you just know they'd accept us, right? I mean, who wouldn't!"

"Yeah Tom, I know, but-"

" _And,_ just imagine all the clothes and accessories we could buy with a million big ones!" Tom looked into his friend's eyes. They widened considerably. "Jen, this is our chance! We gotta start thinking big, doll, and this is the way to do it! We're already a great team, so who's to say we couldn't win a reality show?"

Jen was silent for a second, her wide eyes darting from Tom, to the flashing button on his computer screen. What Nicole had said about publicity rang in the back of her head, and then came the voice of her five year old self squealing about how much it wanted to be on television. As always, Tom was right. This was their chance.

She looked up, a cheeky smile creeping across her face. Tom waited in anticipation for her response.

"I say we do it!" Jen screeched, her voice cracking a considerable amount, but none of that mattered as Tom scooped her into his arms. Hugging each other tightly, the fashion bloggers hollered and cheered about their latest decision.

Once they broke apart from one another, still squealing, Tom forcefully pressed the flashing application button in the corner of the webpage. They were immediately met by a picture of Don, the show'd host, and a survey to fill out.

"So," The male blogger began happily. "What do you stay we get started, partner?"

"I say, let's get going!"

The first block to fill out required the pair to pick a team label. This particular label is what they would be referred to throughout the course of the competition. It had to be something that described your relationship, your personality, your passion. It had to represent not one half, but _both_ halves of the partnership. After all, this buddy comedy was a team effort, after all.

"Ooh, what do you think of this?" Tom smiled, revealing the label he had come up with.

"The Fashion Bloggers?" Jen wrapped her arms around her friend's shoulders, giving him a grin. "I love it! Tom, we are _so **the team to beat!** " _

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**And, fin! I hope you enjoyed my early interpretation of my favorite Ridonculous Race team, the Fabulous Fashion Bloggers!**

 **This is, as I already stated, my first story on my new account, so I would appreciate it if you left a quick review for me! It really does help to motivate me as a writer, and you can also PM me story requests with every review you give! Win-win!**

 **Thank you all for your support, and if you haven't seen it yet, I encourage you to watch episode one of TDRR! - _Kitty_**


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